Republic of Navonia
The Republic of Navonia is a country situated in the south-eastern area of Rodenia, bordering Granida and Sudetia. It was founded in 1921 out of the Second Navonian Empire after Emperor Gregory II was assassinated. Though Navonia has a parliament with multiple parties, High Representative Yuri Regalio rules the country by decree. The Republic of Navonia has a rather violent history and the current leadership depends on oppression to stay in power. The regime has nonetheless a remarkable support base and does try to appease its citizens within the boundaries of what they deem acceptable. Pargoth City is the Navonian capital. History Transition from empire The Republic of Navonia was created out of the Second Navonian Empire. Emperor Gregory II succeeded his father, Gregory I, in 1891. Pressure from the bourgeoisie had already transformed the autocratic regime significantly, but it were the demands of the commoners that called the empire into question. Ideas of general suffrage and social justice gained terrain pretty fast. By 1918 strikes for higher payment were organized nationwide and in August of that year a march on the Imperial Palace was held. Emperor Gregory II promised reforms to calm the masses. He erected the Navonian parliament and appointed representatives in preparation of a new constitution. The appointed parliament counted four factions: the liberal Reform Party, the left-wing Radical Party, the National Party and a conservative faction. Parliament was preparing the new constitution when Gregory II got assassinated on October 6 1920 by Gustav Franzen, an anarcho-liberal and Selessian nationalist. The exact motive of Franzen remained unclear, but the circumstances indicated that he wanted to avoid a stronger legitimacy of the emperor's rule in the Selessian provinces. The conservatives and some generals saw a chance to revert the promised freedoms which they deemed to radical. They profited from the disarray caused by the emperor's death and staged a reactionary coup in November 1920. The coup was answered by street violence and major uproar by the common people who held on to the emperor's promises. As it became clear the people where supported by a majority of the army regulars, the coup stagers returned on their steps out of fear for a civil war. In January 1921 the first election with general suffrage was held, with more than a year of delay. The Republic The parties that participated in the 1921 elections corresponded with the factions of the appointed parliament. It were the Radical Party and National Party that won a majority of seats. Both parties merged into the Unity Party. Government policy was opposed by the conservatives, who sought to restore the Empire, and the Reform Party. Under the Unity Party the new constitution was approved on March 2, 1921. For the formal creation of a republic, the government got support of the Reform Party, the Conservatives opposed. The country was lead by High Representative Thomas Ederling who lead the country towards more unity and freedom but did impose strict control on education and political activity. With the global recession of 1929 and growing international tension, the government turned the country inwards and tightened its control of the economy. In spite of his dictatorial style of governing Ederling managed to maintain his party's popularity, realizing marginal gains in the elections of 1926 and 1931. It where the conservatives who suffered most from this success. In the 1936 elections the conservatives gained a lot of votes due to the international climate. The newly established and fascist-like Union of the Right also scored well. The Unity Party and the Reform Party formed a front against the growing forces of conservatives or rightists. The Reform Party agreed to this under the condition that more economic freedom would be given, but no actual measures were taken. Because the Second World War had broken out, the 1941 elections were cancelled. To 'maintain the necessary stability' the Conservative Party was forced to enter a government of national unity. Additionally, the Union of the Right got banned. Due to its attitude during the wartime, the Reform Party had to face bad results in 1946. It modernized its viewpoints, elected a new leadership and renamed itself to the Reform and Liberty Party (RLP). In the meantime the UP/CP government coalition enacted a pragmatic policy and stayed in power due to harassment practices. Some conservative politicians were uneasy with the growing dependency the Conservative Party was showing and so they split the party. Many popular conservatives moved to the liberal opposition. Election polls predicted a major victory for the RLP. Ederling however managed to pass a new voting law that would make representatives appointed nationwide instead of by province. Due to the new regulation, only 14 RLP-members got elected. The liberal province of Upper-Selessia was upset and threats of secession where made. The government, still the UP/CP coalition, raised pressure on the rebellious province and forced the RLP to distance itself from Selessian nationalism. The harsh measures and culture of oppression caused some friction within the Unity Party though. Its leadership decided to modernize and appointed Robert Guttman as new High Representative in 1961. Robert Guttman proved to be a weak figure. The good image of the UP was fading and the government was incapable of coping with the economic crisis of the 70's. In the election of 1981, new parties like the Progressive Party and the Democratic Union made their appearance. Together with the RLP, the new parties were good for 52 percent of the votes. A RLP/DU/PP government was established, but it soon fell over the question of how to counter the economic setback. The Progressive Party was dropped on exchange for the Conservative Party. The new government carried out a harsh liberal policy that later on backfired to the governments popularity. The Unity Party and the Progressive Party merged into the Political Union of Leftists and Progressives (PULP), which defends a leftist economic policy. In the 1986 election the government coalition was severely punished for its economic measures. No government could be formed for a while until the Conservative Party agreed to support a RLP/DU minority cabinet from the opposition. This move only postponed the progressive victory which came about in the 1991 election. PULP got 48% percent of the votes and took up the Democratic Union in a government coalition. Yuri Regalio became the new High Representative and together with the coalition remained in power until today. Politics Administrative division as of March 2011]] ]] When the Republic of Navonia got founded, it was divided into nine regions and thirty-six provinces. This was a concession of progressives to the separatist and regionalist forces in order to unite in a front against the conservatives. The loyalist conservatives wanted to maintain the unitary structure of the Navonian Empire. The final administrative division was based on territorial units that existed before the empire and is thus closely related to the Navonian history. This division in regions and provinces is still used today. The regions have their own parliaments and can create legislation concerning culture and education. The provinces are in charge of infrastructural works and match with the voting districts. The entire system is mostly administrative, meaning that the different regions and provinces have no real sovereignty. The provinces have to answer to the regions and the regions are in turn subordinate to the national apparatus. The nine regions of the Navonian republic are: * Region of Pargoth * Region of Navonia * Region of Ostland * Region of Harbin * Region of Massovia * Region of New-Saxony * Region of Lower-Selessia * Region of Upper-Selessia * Region of Murcia Political institutions The Republic of Navonia is lead by a government which is elected directly by the people through elections organized every five years. These elections are organized by the thirty-six election districts which coincide with the Navonian provinces. Before the election reform of 1961 each district accounted for an amount of representatives based on a census held every ten years. These representatives made up parliament and appointed the government. Government is traditionally formed by a coalition of the biggest parties and lead by a High Representative. Due to a weakened position of the leading Unity Party and Conservative Party a reform was pushed trough. Since then the system of censuses and representatives was changed by a direct nationwide election. The reform remains controversial up till today, though most parties have accepted the system. Another measure to block the attrition the establishment suffered was that only recognized political parties may participate in the Navonian elections. Political parties which are currently recognized are PULP, Democratic Union, Reform and Liberty Party, Conservative Party and New Greens. The Selessian Front and the Integrationist League are not recognized, but the latter is affiliated with the Democratic Union. Next to the national parliament, the nine regions of Navonia each have a regional parliament which is entitled to pass legislation on cultural issues and education. The regional parliaments are however subordinate to the national parliament. In general the Navonian political structure is very hierarchical, concentrating all power by the High Representative and the ruling parties. Because of this Navonia is sometimes considered a particracy. In political science, the Navonian political system in general is sometimes referred to as a low intensity democracy. Foreign relations The Republic of Navonia and its predecessors have always been mostly oriented inwards. Today, the republic has the policy to remain neutral in international conflicts unless they concern the people's interests. This 'rule of neutrality' has even been adopted in the Navonian constitution. Though in the first republican years the former isolationist policy was weakened, a return to self-reliance was made after the European interwar period. This because the financial crisis of the '30s and the beginning of World War II caused unrest in Navonia. Ever since the Navonian foreign policy extended no further than the Rodenian continent. The most important topic is at the moment the conflict between Noel and Viola. Especially the Reform and Liberty Party stresses the need for a clear and firm stance. It also seeks to open up the country's boundaries in order to get the Navonian economy geared into the free world trade. Also important is the growing influence of the Integrationist League, a political movement that seeks to unite the country with its neighbors Granida and Sudetia based on a European model. The Integrationist League is not prohibited, as the Navonian establishment originally sought to do, but is not allowed to take part in elections as an independent party. Therefor, it allied with the Democratic Union. The current High Representative Yuri Regalio has slightly opened up discussion but remains his policy focused on domestic issues. The incumbent government has already stated she wishes to enhance the relationship with neighboring countries. The most recent StabMin index, a rudimentary system to estimate the overall political stability of a country, deems Navonia's internal situation "stable"; declaring that the "government is in control, but protest of unhappy opposition is on the rise". Navonia's international politics are also descried as stable: "little contact, no mutual interests, diplomatic incidents and economic strife." Government officials stated that nonetheless these rather poor results, Navonia is still fourth on the index list. Category:Republic of Navonia Category:Country